Brentford FC are now settled into their brand new Brentford Community Stadium. Fans are disappointed that due to the current coronavirus restrictions, they have yet to see their new home.

But the club's CEO, Jon Varney, says supporters have been able to keep in touch with the club.

Brentford Nub News caught up with him to talk about how the club is getting through these challenging times, his thoughts on the restrictions, the club's financial position and its commitment to the Brentford community.

Nub News: Firstly, Jon, what's life like in the new stadium?

JV: It's absolutely magnificent, it's everything we hoped for and worked for. But it's just so sad that we cannot yet welcome the fans because of the Covid-19 restrictions.

Nub News: The government announced the Rule of Six just before a limited number of fans were going to be allowed back into stadiums. How disappointing is this?

JV: It's incredibly disappointing. We had worked very hard with the council and safety advisors to gear up to letting a limited number of fans into the stadium. But after the Rule of Six decision, that plan was put on hold. We were confident we could have brought supporters back in safely. We will continue to work tirelessly towards the point where we can have our fans return.

Nub News: Has the club been able to keep in touch with fans during the pandemic crisis?

JV: We have managed to keep in touch through fans' groups and social media. Since March when the lockdown was introduced our key objective was to communicate with the fans. We also looked at our season ticket database and actually phoned supporters over the age of 70 to see how we could help. Even our team manager Thomas Frank put in calls.

Nub News: That would be a bit of a shock, finding Thomas Frank on the phone!?

JV: The first few seconds of the call might have seemed a bit strange but when it sank in the response was incredibly heart-warming and our supporters were extremely grateful.

Nub News: With uncertainty continuing over when fans can return, what's the club's financial situation as matchday revenue dries up?

JV: We are in perhaps better financial shape than other clubs. We have been less reliant on matchday income. Our matchday income while at Griffin Park was modest. But we have to be sensible and keep our costs down. This season we have seen an increase in season ticketholders, from 6,000 at Griffin Park to 12,000 this season. We also gave the fans the opportunity to either freeze their season tickets or receive a refund. Some 90 per cent have chosen to keep their money in the club which is just fantastic.

Nub News: Brentford FC has a fantastic record for its involvement in the community. How is this continuing?

JV: We have done and are doing a huge amount of work with the Brentford Community Sport Trust and we've been active during the Covid lockdown. We've also been involved with the Hounslow Recovery Board which was set up to look for ways of getting through the crisis. We have been mindful of how Hounslow has been deeply affected. It is close to Heathrow and many airport employees who are Brentford fans have been affected.

Nub News: And finally…Brentford is a town that is expanding with more people coming to live here. Is that good news for the club and its expansion?

JV: It is and we are seeing our fanbase increase all the time. We have many new fans from Chiswick, Kew and Richmond. But we are still at the heart of the Brentford community. The new stadium is very visual in the town, we are not stuck miles away on an industrial estate.